The Tangle of Blood

Chapter Fourteen: Cat and the Apprentice

Rosalyn finished getting ready in the quiet of their chamber. Rowena was talking to her again, but something was off. Her brows creased in the mirror as she braided her hair into two long braids. What was it? The edginess in her sister was making her anxious.

She kneaded at the tension between her brows. For the first time since the rainy day in the arena, Rosalyn wasn't in the mood to push her body. She just wanted to lie back down in her cozy bed or curl up by the fire with the new book Rane had lent her.

She eyed the book longingly and headed for the door. She glanced back at her bed and noticed the pair of brown leather gloves lying on the bed. She crossed the room to retrieve them. She began turning them over in her hands, when the bell rang loudly. She had an idea what they were intended for but desperately hoped she was wrong. Quickly, Rosalyn shoved the gloves in her belt and ran out of the warmth of the guard's quarters into the chilly arena.

Eyeing Alex and Rane she walked to them reaching for the gloves in her belt. "What are these for?" she asked hastily.

Rane looked at her with a questioning and somewhat amused expression, "They're riding gloves, of course." Rane giggled as she watched her friend's eyes widen in apparent fear. "Don't tell me after all of this, you're going to be frightened of riding a horse." She choked down another laugh.

"I am not frightened," Rosalyn defended herself, but she continued turning the gloves over in her hands. Her mind went back to the riding lessons the Campbells had forced them into. About ten minutes into the first lesson, a stray dog had jumped out from behind a fence line and frightened her horse. She recalled landing flat on her back after the bucking horse threw her and headed for the paddock.

She shook the memory away and felt a cold sweat form on her forehead. She used the back of her shirt sleeve to wipe it away as Trevyn began speaking. "How many of you have any experience with horses?"

Rosalyn glanced around the arena. Most raised their hands. Even Alex and Rowena had continued lessons for nearly a year. Terrified, Rosalyn had adamantly refused to entertain the idea, a fact she was now cursing herself for.

Trevyn nodded, "Well, this should'na be too bad then. Each of your horses is tended by his or her very own stable hand."

Rosalyn felt herself go clammy as she heard the clop of hooves on dried ground. She saw them begin to file in the far gate. My goodness, they were big. She could see Rane and Alex watching her, clearly amused, from the corner of her eye, but she couldn't take her eyes off of the large animals filling the arena.

Trevyn circled her and let out a gruff laugh. "Maschon, Rosalyn," Trevyn let out in Terrish when he saw Rosalyn. He shook away the humor. "You'll be one of the fiercest warriors this or any realm will ever see someday, and you're afraid of a horse?"

With a serious expression, he crossed the small space to a large brown horse with a white patch of hair between its eyes. He rubbed the horse's snout fondly. "A warrior rides into battle, sitting tall on horseback. He or she is only as capable as the steed they sit atop."

Rane made her way to a horse as white as fallen snow. Under any other circumstance, Rosalyn might have appreciated the irony. The horse whinnied and nudged her hand as she approached. With ease, she mounted the horse. Grabbing the reins, she cleared her throat to address the group. "Your horses have been hand selected by our highly trained stable master. It is very important that you connect, horse and rider. It's imperative that you possess an equal respect for one another. Both of your lives may depend on it someday." She raised an arm and motioned for the stable hands to move forward with the horses.